Benjamin Okolski
| Benjamin Okolski | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Castile and Okolski in 2008. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Full name | Benjamin Okolski | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | November 12, 1984 Tucson, Arizona | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Figure skating career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Skating club | Arctic FSC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Began skating | 1993 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Benjamin Okolski (born on November 12, 1984) is an American pair skater. With Brooke Castile, he is the 2007 U.S. national champion, 2008 Four Continents bronze medalist, and 2007 Nebelhorn Trophy champion.
Career
Benjamin Okolski was born in Tucson, Arizona. He began skating at age eight and began pairs at twelve with his sister, Colleen.[1] He teamed up with Brooke Castile after the 2002 U.S. Championships.[2][1] They won two bronze medals on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series. They placed 7th at their first Four Continents in 2005. Following the 2006 U.S. Championships, Castile and Okolski changed coaches to Johnny Johns and Marina Zueva at the Arctic Figure Skating Club in Canton, Michigan.[1] They won the 2007 U.S. Championships,[3] earning them the right to compete at 2007 Four Continents, where they were 5th, and then to make their World debut, where they finished 12th.
In the 2007–2008 season, Castile and Okolski were assigned to 2007 Nebelhorn Trophy, 2007 Skate America, and 2007 Trophée Eric Bompard, but withdrew from all three due to injury.[1][4] They won bronze at the 2008 U.S. Championships and went on to win a bronze medal in their third Four Continents appearance. They finished 11th at their second World Championships.
In 2008–2009, they also withdrew from their Grand Prix assignments, 2008 Cup of China and 2008 Cup of Russia, due to injury.[4][5] They finished 5th at the 2009 U.S. Championships.
In the 2009–2010 season, Castile and Okolski were 6th at 2009 Skate America. Their 4th-place finish at the 2010 U.S. Championships meant they did not make the U.S. team to the 2010 Winter Olympics. They announced their retirement from competitive skating in May 2010.[6]
Programs
(with Castile)
| Season | Short program | Free skating |
|---|---|---|
| 2009–2010 [7][8] |
|
|
| 2008–2009 [8] |
|
|
| 2007–2008 [9][1] |
|
|
| 2006–2007 [10] |
|
|
| 2004–2006 [11][8] |
|
|
| 2003–2004 [12] |
|
|
Competitive highlights
With Colleen Okolski
| Even | 2001 | 2002 |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Championships | 4th N. | 5th N. |
| N. = Novice level | ||
With Brooke Castile
| Results[13] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| International | ||||||||
| Event | 2002–03 | 2003–04 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 | 2009–10 |
| Worlds | 12th | 11th | ||||||
| Four Continents | 7th | 5th | 3rd | |||||
| GP Bompard | 6th | WD | ||||||
| GP Cup of China | WD | |||||||
| GP Cup of Russia | 8th | WD | ||||||
| GP Skate America | WD | 6th | ||||||
| Nebelhorn | 1st | WD | 4th | |||||
| International: Junior | ||||||||
| Junior Worlds | 9th | |||||||
| JGP Bulgaria | 4th | |||||||
| JGP China | 5th | |||||||
| JGP France | 3rd | |||||||
| JGP Japan | 3rd | |||||||
| JGP USA | 6th | |||||||
| National | ||||||||
| U.S. Champ. | 6th J. | 2nd J. | 7th | 8th | 1st | 3rd | 5th | 4th |
| GP = Grand Prix; JGP = Junior Grand Prix J. = Junior level; WD = Withdrew | ||||||||
References
- ^ a b c d e Walker, Elvin (October 1, 2007). "Organization Works for US Pairs Champs". Golden Skate.
- ^ Mittan, Barry (December 12, 2005). "Castile and Okolski Show Promise". SkateToday.
- ^ "Kids' Questions". U.S. Figure Skating. May 2007.
- ^ a b "Daisuke Takahashi Pulls Out of Cup of China; Brooke Castile and Ben Okolski Also Withdraw". IFS Magazine. November 5, 2008.
- ^ "Castile and Okolski pull out of Cup of Russia because of injury". Associated Press. ESPN. November 18, 2008. Archived from the original on January 8, 2012.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Castile and Okolski Announce Retirement from Competitive Figure Skating". U.S. Figure Skating. May 13, 2010. Retrieved May 5, 2011.
- ^ "Brooke CASTILE / Benjamin OKOLSKI: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on December 2, 2009.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c "Brooke Castile / Benjamin Okolski". Ice Network. Archived from the original on July 13, 2011.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Brooke CASTILE / Benjamin OKOLSKI: 2007/2008". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 26, 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Brooke CASTILE / Benjamin OKOLSKI: 2006/2007". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on July 6, 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Brooke CASTILE / Benjamin OKOLSKI: 2005/2006". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 17, 2006.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Brooke CASTILE / Benjamin OKOLSKI: 2003/2004". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on June 17, 2004.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Competition Results: Brooke CASTILE / Benjamin OKOLSKI". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on December 4, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)
External links
